Posted on December 1, 1999
Posted on November 26, 1999
A couple of updates for you today.
First of all, I should report that I spent most of this week and part of last putting the finishing touches on my upcomng CD-ROM archive. It’s now in the hands of my distributor and is in the process of being being made as we speak. It should be available early next week, and it will contain every image in the gallery up to “Aftermath”. Personally, it think it would make a nice stocking stuffer, but that’s up to you. Aside from the fact that it will be discounted for members, I haven’t decided what to charge for the CD. I’d appreciate any input you might have on what would be a fair price. Either way, it will be available soon…
Unfortunately the CD will not contain my latest work. “Early Frost” is up in the Day Scenery gallery and the WIP. It’s my first image created using Animatek’s World Builder 2.2, so it’s a little rough around the edges, I apologize. I gotta level with you now: I don’t think you’ll be seeing much Bryce or even Vue d’Esprit for quite a while. I am completely hooked on World Builder.
Why? First and foremost, it’s multi-threaded (Bryce isn’t) so it uses my dual-processor workstation to its fullest potential. “Early Frost”, for example, rendered in just under 30 minutes at 1600 x 1200 (compared to 24 hours for “The Turning”). What else? Its vegetation model is a lot more realistic (not to mention more efficient). More? Its landscape system allows for winding roads, rippling rivers (complete with whitewater), lapping waves, waterfalls, and footprints. Oh yeah, it also exports entire scenes into Lightwave, which opens up a whole new set of possibilities.
Anyway, I’ll stop frothing now. I hope you like the new image, but just remember that it’s only a first attempt. Your comments and feedback are doubly appreciated.
Posted on November 20, 1999
Posted on November 17, 1999
Added “Zard” to the Posers gallery and the WIP. This is my first “real” project done using Lightwave. To be honest, I’ve spent too many hours re-rendering different views of this one (using different settings) and I think it’s time to move on. Someday I’LL be good enough to model my own person using Lightwave, but for now I just wanted to learn some lightning techniques and special effects. I hope you like it even though it’s only a “training” piece.
I’ve rounded out my software toolkit by purchasing a few more Lightwave plugins. Here’s the scoop on what I have so far and what I will be getting in the next few days (the first link you click will open a new window and each of the others will load in the same window if you leave it open):
I may also purchase plugin called “Digital Nature Tools“, but I want to see if World Builder has the features I want before I spent another $700. I just wanted you to know where your membership fees are going 🙂
Posted on November 11, 1999
For all the images I’ve posted over the past couple of weeks, you would think that I have been spending my days at the beach, or on the couch watching the Discovery Channel. Actually I’ve done quite a lot of rendering but everything has been little bits and pieces, trying out new effects and techniques, etc. I feel kind of like a wizard with a new spellbook.
Anyway. I really liked Fluorescence and I know a lot of you did too. None of my renders over the past few days have given me the “wow” factor I got from the blue shrooms, until now.
In my last update I posted the original version of Gotham, resurrected from “BR3 heaven” by the latest version of Bryce. My brain cells started percolating while I was looking at that image, and I came to the conclusion that old Gotham needed a little “urban renewal”. Gotham 1999 is new today in the Night Scenery Gallery and the WIP. I hope you like what I’ve done, you may see more of this…hope you like.